The month of June indicates the transition of seasons from spring to summer. It also marks our transition to a new normal.

During the past several months, parts of our country have grappled with various shelter-in-place orders to slow the spread of coronavirus. Equally important, during the past week we have been consumed with multiple social injustices at the hands of police officers which sparked country-wide protests.

One or both occurrences have triggered feelings of sadness, anger, grief, loss, rage, frustration, disrespect, disgust, hatred, confusion, loneliness, fear, hopelessness, worthlessness, anxiety, among others.

In addition to the above, our feelings have been exacerbated by the abrupt changes to our daily routines. Some made the transition from the office to teleworking while others were furloughed or terminated. Our students moved from the physical classroom with friends to virtual learning while self-isolating in their homes. Our beauty regiments morphed from visiting beauty and nail salons to our becoming home-based cosmetologists. Many went from worshipping among the saints to live streaming. Our appearances have been altered with masks on our face and our hands covered with gloves. Our once plentiful grocery store shelves have become bare due to the demand of food and other goods. One of the most traumatic adjustments is how we honor the life and transition of our friends and loved ones. Our celebrations of life have been reduced to no hospital visits and funerals limited to 10 people. Unfortunately, the shelter-in-place orders have created increased opportunities for some to become further traumatized.

While the Pandemic is something we have never experienced, we are not strangers to the changes triggered by living life.

Our ability to adapt started as babies when we made the transition from crawling to walking and from diapers to being potty trained. Similarly, the leap from elementary to middle to high school came with its own set of physical and emotional obstacles. Think about the adjustments we made at the time we progressed from residing with parents/friends to living alone. Those of us who are married understand the transition we made at the time of “I do”. Those who are parents made the necessary adjustments to maintain their relationship, while concurrently addressing the demands of parenting. When we change employers, we go through an adaption period and over time become more comfortable in our new environment.

Despite the challenges we continue to endure at the hands of the coronavirus pandemic, there have been some positives. For example, healthcare and educational disparities are on full display which have led to overdue discussions; students who normally would not be connected to technology are able to virtually travel to new frontiers in their homes; some people gave birth to their artistic attributes and created essential items needed to sustain us during this season; most Americans were issued a stimulus payment to support their expenses while those receiving unemployment compensation benefited from an additional $600.00 per week; some couples’ marriages were reignited due to spending more time together.

As we take a moment to reflect on our progression from social isolation to re-opening and peaceful protesting to legislative proposals, we can use this time to consider our personal and historical transformative events. Specifically, the revolutionary tragedies that have led to triumphs. For instance, Jesus was born of a virgin. He was tempted, just as we are today, but never committed sin. He lived a perfect life for 33 years. Jesus was crucified and received the penalty for our wrongdoing – death. However, He rose on the third day. A short time later, Jesus ascended into heaven where He sits at the right-hand of God. We are alive today because of Jesus’ death and resurrection. However, it is the resurrection that gives the believer their hope. In another example, the 1950s and 1960s gave way to multiple protests, the freedom riders, and sit-ins to highlight the negative effects of Jim Crow laws. Black bodies were beaten and lynched due to the color of their skin. My ancestors were denied basic human rights. The courage, strength, and faith of well-known and unknown individuals made varying degrees of sacrifice in pursuit of equal rights. Despite the challenges set before them, their determination and persistence led to the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. These examples and others are an indication of how our darkest moments can lead to our greatest reward.

There are countless situations that demonstrate our ability to overcome life’s challenges. While these occurrences do not compare to the previous examples, it does demonstrate our ability to be resilient and resourceful. It will be these skills, along with others, that will help us emerge from this pandemic and social unrest with a renewed sense of our life’s purpose.

As we settle into this New Normal where there are no U-Turns, please reflect on the following questions to support your adjustment:

• Identify the situation(s) that has led you to your “new normal”?

• Acknowledge your feelings.

• What are the advantages and disadvantages of your new normal?

• What are some strategies you could implement to support how you address the disadvantages of your “new normal”?

• What are some things you can tell yourself to challenge the negative thinking?

Thank you for taking the time to read this post.